


The Taste of Dreams

by 8ucky8arnes



Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-04 19:00:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25021303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/8ucky8arnes/pseuds/8ucky8arnes
Summary: "A dream is a very real thing.I’d know: I’ve felt them.I’ve lived them. I tasteone on my lips every tineyou kiss me goodnight."-FarawayA series on one-shots focused entirely on the amazing relationship that is Brainy and Nia.
Relationships: Minor or Background Relationship(s), Querl Dox/Nia Nal
Kudos: 14





	1. Learn Me

**Author's Note:**

> _“Put your hands here.  
>  then here,  
> and here.  
> Learn me.”_  
> -Tiffany Simone

Nia’s heels clicked as she walked down the hallways of the D.E.O., knowing exactly where she needed to go despite not having been in the building before. She also managed to avoid those who would stop her.

She only had an hour for lunch (forty minutes now) and she’d gone out of her way to come here since her boyfriend seemed to have forgotten their scheduled lunch date and neglected to answer her calls or texts.

She _knew_ he wasn’t intentionally ignoring her. If Alex or Colonel Hayley had given him a task, he would put 100% of his focus into it and push everything else to the wayside, not unlike she did when she was deep in a story.

She paused outside the door and stared at the keypad for a moment before letting her hand rest over it as she closed her eyes, typing out the seven-digit passcode a short thirty seconds later before entering.

Brainy was sitting cross-legged on one end of a long weapons crate with a straight spine, closed eyes, and steepled hands with a tablet balancing perfectly on his knee. It was his stillness that said he was still engrossed in his task, unaware of her entrance.

Slipping off her heels, she lifted herself up next to him.

Leaning over the tablet, she watched the images and code flash across the screen too fast for her to even begin to comprehend for a moment before she asked, “So, what are you doing?”

His eyes snapped open with alarm. “Nia Nal!”

Nia caught the tablet before it hit the floor, nearly laughing as he almost followed it. She could see just how quickly he put all the pieces together, taking in her outfit and bare feet. She was mindful to keep her smile, though. “You good there?”

“I am alright.” He smoothed out his shirt, “I must apologize, I didn’t-”

She set aside the tablet, “Hey, it’s alright.”

“But it was a scheduled date and I _forgot_.” He seemed genuinely distressed, twisting his Legion ring as he unfolded his legs, looking like he wanted nothing more than to be moving, “I never forget. When I talked to Lena and Alex and Kara, they all instructed me on the importance of remembering these kinds of occasions-”

She slid off the crate. “It’s a lunch date, Brainy, not an anniversary.”

He looked down at his hands, “You’re not upset.”

She laughed, shaking her head, “No, I’m not.”

He blinked, looking around the armory then at her, “You’re at the D.E.O.”

Nia chuckled, “Yes, I am.”

“You just…” he motioned at the door, “walked in?’

“Alex helped me out a bit. Besides,” She grinned, “I knew what to expect.”

He glanced at the door, “You could’ve been questioned because I-”

Standing on her tiptoes, she took his face in her hands and pulled him into a kiss that told him that she was perfectly okay with their current situation and she smiled as she felt his fluttering hands settle on her hips as he drew her closer.

“Nia…” he managed as she trailed her mouth along his jaw, “we shouldn’t be doing this while-”

“ _Relax_ , Agent Dox.” She murmured into his neck as her hands moved slowly down his chest, mouth lingering on his racing pulse and smiling at his breathing grew uneven at the barely-there graze of her teeth, “You’re thinking too much.”

“Nia…”

Warmth bloomed in her chest at the way he breathed out her name and she knew all he needed was _one more push_ so Nia pulled back, calves burning as she stood flat-footed once more, and smiled as he looked down at her. “Help me out?”

He blinked, appearing momentarily confused.

Nia hesitated for a split second, wondering if she needed to be clearer in her wording-

Brainy slid down off the crate, drawing her into a kiss so quickly she couldn’t have seen it coming if she tried, one hand snaking into her hair and tilting her head up while the other splayed on her lower back and pulled her flush against him.

Her fists bunched the fabric of his shirt as she groaned, the sheer intensity and force of the kiss completely knocking her off-kilter as she felt her back slam against one of the metal cages lining the armory with a loud rattling sound.

She knew she should be wondering what time it was. If she should be fixing the rumples in her blouse and skirt or the tangles in her hair before hurrying back to Catco or even using her abilities to see if (or when) they would be interrupted but then his hands cupped the back of her thighs and lifted her up and it was all she could do to wrap her legs around his waist.

Her head fell back against the cage, her loud, gasping breaths being drowned out by the blood rushing in her ears and Brainy took full advantage of her bared throat, lips trailing along the taut tendons and pounding pulse in an almost identical fashion to what she’d done earlier.

Being the sole object of his focus was something she’d always fantasized about, but there was no facet of her imagination that even came close to how she felt in that moment as fingers lightly followed the lines of muscle in her thighs up inch by inch, dimly aware that he was noting every single thing she did. Every shuddering breath. Every flex of muscle. Every pounding beat of her heart. Cataloging it all for future reference…

“Agent Dox?”

Both went rigid at the icy calm in Alex’s- no _Director Danver’s_ -voice.

Nia could physically feel the switch in Brainy as he lowered her to the ground, the unfettered want in his eyes and his genuine smile being replaced with something much more subdued and apologetic as he turned to face the woman.

Nia, on the other hand, couldn’t look at her.

God, this was possibly the most embarrassing thing she’d ever experienced to date. Worse than blabbering on and on to Kara on their very first meeting or even her and Brainy’s disastrous miscommunication in regards to their first “date”. She felt guilty in a way she hadn’t felt before, feeling as though she’d pushed him into doing something that could (and most likely would) get him into trouble…

She tried (and failed) to shove down the heat in her cheeks as she concentrated on putting one foot in front of the other as she walked on unsteady legs to slip into her heels, but she couldn’t help but listen to the conversation, neither Brainy nor Alex concerned with her doing so.

“You _are_ aware of the risks I took, allowing her down here?”

“Yes, of course, I am aware. I fail to see why you are so upset.” He seemed almost confused by the question, no doubt staring at the clearly irate woman with a furrowed brow like he was surprised she would even consider him doing something without being aware of the risks. “It is not as though this is the first time.”

Silence followed his statement and her curiosity outweighed her embarrassment, Nia turning in time to see Alex’s stony expression fracture as she blinked, and was that a _blush?_ She looked over at Brainy and saw the slight uptick of his chin that told her that a calculation had been proven correct. That he’d seen this conversation coming and had formulated an appropriate response.

“I also recall you saying you _owed me one_.”

Nia might not have been able to process as quickly as Brainy but she certainly knew how to fill in the blanks, knew just what Brainy had owed Alex. After all, it wasn’t like they were the only new couple in the group…

Alex narrowed her eyes, jaw flexing.

Nia wondered if he accounted for getting shot with a stun gun.

She looked over at Nia, everything softening as she let out a long breath. “You have…” she picked up the forgotten tablet and glanced down before handing it to Brainy, “about fifteen minutes to straighten yourself up in the locker room and head on back to Catco. I trust that you know the way?”

Nia nodded, moving to leave.

“Nia?” Alex smiled, “ _Relax_. You’re not the one I’m mad at.”

Both looked over at Brainy as he tapped away at the tablet, seemingly ignoring the conversation in favor of whatever was on the screen. Nia caught the fond exasperation in Alex’s expression before she managed a small smile and turned to Nia, “I’ll see you later, Director?”

Her mouth twitched, “Movie night on Friday?”

“Yeah.” Nia looked over at Brainy, his dark hair falling in his face as he once again focused intently on the task at hand and bringing to mind the feeling of having all that focus on her. She swallowed thickly, cheeks flushing anew, “Make it a girl’s night?”

Alex’s smile was knowing when she responded, “Done.”


	2. Grand and Beautiful Force

**Notes for the Chapter:**

>  _“What a grand  
>  and beautiful force  
> the immense  
> and wildly unappreciated  
> power of  
> human touch.”_ –Atticus 
> 
> Chapter Note: I’m back! Sorry about the wait but I hope you like this one. A little bit of Nia whump and Brainy being his usual supportive (and worried) self. Hope you all enjoy! 
> 
> Trigger warning in effect for xenophobia and homophobia in regards to the Children of Liberty being a horrible group of people.

As soon as her alarm went off, Nia  knew she wouldn’t be able to go into work today. No amount of painkillers could numb her  _ entire body _ enough for her to function comfortably at work.

_ Stupid Children of Liberty… _

One would’ve thought with all that happened with Ben Lockwood and Lex  Luthor that they’d realize it would be smarter to just pack up and go home but they still seemed determined to rid Earth of all the “roaches”.

There’d been two girls walking with hands laced together; one a human with dark hair and the other with beautiful glimmering lavender skin and pale hair; probably on a date, when four men in masks pulled their truck onto the sidewalk and cornered them.

The dark-haired girl immediately shielded the other, her expression fierce, and the sight had reminded Nia of her and  Brainy’s first meeting and the image of the men charging at him with baseball bats had her jumping in without  a second thought .

The men had been laughingly underprepared for her at first, none of their hits coming remotely close to connecting as she wrapping tendrils of dream energy around them and sent them flying back. Then the images streaked through her mind…

The flash of headlights. A  _ thud _ . Screaming. Blood spreading across the asphalt.

With only seconds to react, she’d thrown up pillars of blue light to stop the truck, the force of the intended impact sending her flying and skidding across the road and into an alley, her body slamming into the side of a dumpster.

The girls had rushed over with identical expressions of horror and concern.

Nia had waved them off with a pained smile as the truck squealed away ,  making sure that the girls were safely on their way and somehow  manag ing to stumble back to her apartment and  collaps e into her bed.

She  looked down at the costume and was  suddenly  glad Yvette worked early on Mondays because she did  _ not _ want to try to explain something as big as  her being a masked superhero while smelling of stale water and trash .

Gritting her teeth, she  got out of bed and moved stiffly to her bathroom, wincing as every step sent a fresh wave of throbbing pain over her , and braced herself against the sink  and grabbed the medicine from the mirror cabinet. 

Swallowing two pills dry, she went back to her room and picked up her phone.

Kara picked up on the first ring, “Hey, Nia!”

She lowered herself back down on the bed, “Hey.”

“What’s up?”

“Can you tell James I won’t be in this morning?”

“Yeah, of course.” The frown could be heard in her voice, “Is everything alright?”

“Yeah. Patrol last night was really draining and I’m  _ exhausted. _ ” She hated lying but didn’t really feel like dealing with Kara and Alex and  _ Brainy _ hovering over her and telling her that there was  a reason no one (with the exception of Kara) went off alone. “I figured it would be better if I just took a day.”

“Did something happen ?”

“No. I was just up later than normal and didn’t get too much sleep the night before.”

“Bad dreams?”

“No, nothing like that. Just an article deadline is all.” It wasn’t exactly a lie. She  _ did  _ have an article due that night but she’d made the point to turn it in before she’d gone out.  _ Keeping up appearances and all that…  _ “ That piece on Lockwood’s son, George?”

“ Oh, I’ve been looking forward to reading that!” Kara’s enthusiasm was genuine and  the attempt to distract  her friend seemed to have been successful, the earlier worry  no longer in her voice ,  “ Alright, well, do want me to bring some food by after work?”

“Yeah, that sounds good!” she forced herself to sound excited even  if  she was already wondering how she could hide her injuries from a persistent  Kryptonian and decided she would cross that bridge when she came to it.

“I will see you later then.”

“See you later, Kara.” She set down her phone, glad that she’d taken one worry off her plate. “Now that that’s been taken care of, I just need to …” She  thought of the discreet zipper  going halfway down her back and nearly groaned at the thought of  twisting her body in the position she needed to reach it, “ get out of this costume.  _ Great. _ ”

S he searched the room for  _ something  _ to help her out and she ignored the voice in her head that sounded eerily like Brainy that kept telling her that  _ it would be unwise in her current condition to remove her costume without the assistance of another person _ …

Her head fell back with a sigh.  _ Brainy…  _ “Crap.”

Nia didn’t need precognitive dreams to know that he wasn’t going to let her out of his sight anytime in the near future. She knew the look he would give her with the tight lips and the furrowed brow.

No doubt he would be coming over as soon as Kara told Alex (which was probably right now) , regardless of whatever he’d be doing in that moment, bursting through her front door (or window )  with said expression on his face.

There was no use in trying to hide anything. She wouldn’t have the time.

So instead, she got to her feet and pulled out a set of pajamas to change into before walking back out into th e hallway and  was halfway to the door when the knock sounded , Nia making her way over and opening the door , “Hey Brainy.”

“Kara told me you  took  the day off  from work  and I decided to come by because you haven’t missed …” he stopped abruptly , taking in her bedraggled state, and frowned. “You’re still in your costume .”

“Yes, I’m still in my costume.” She moved to shut the door and felt his gentle hand stop her.

“You’re injured.”

“I…” she  closed her mouth, knowing it would be pointless to  argue , and leaned into his hold,  “Probably  just some bruising.” Nia  saw  his doubt ,  and blushed a t the suggestion that left her mouth,  “ But I need help taking this off so, you can be the judge of that.”

Nodding, he helped her back to her bedroom.

Nia had never been more thankful for his  single-minded focus than in that moment, ignoring the  somersault her stomach  did  as he brushed her hair to the side and pulled down the zipper before helping her out of her uniform with quick efficiency. 

Wearing only spandex , a sports bra a nd white camisole, Nia was positive this was the most undressed she’d been in anyone else’s presence since Maeve. Her chest ached at the memory of her sister and her face burned as his hands innocently brushed the back of her calf pulling off her costume , his eyes full of concern .

He grimaced at the smell, but folded her uniform over the chair and continued.

She was quiet as he took her vitals,  his touch light as he examined the bruises that dotted the skin of her legs, her arms, her shoulders… Nia managed to ignore the trails of heat he was leaving in his wake,  only to jump when he squeezed her hand to get her attention .

“I need to lift your shirt to examine your ribcage.”

“Uh, yeah. Okay.”  Nia didn’t  think  her face could get any redder,  “You do that.”

He  cleared her throat as he lifted the hem and Nia saw the large bruise that covered her left side ,  where she’d slammed into the dumpster.  Brainy’s hands began to shake. “Nia. I…” he dropped the shirt and look ed up at her, “what happened?”

“Children of Liberty were harassing these two girls. I pushed them back and I saw…” she shook her head as the images came back.  _ The flash of headlights. A thud. Screaming… _ “They were going to run them over so I put up a barrier but the impact threw me back and-”

“The girls?”

“They got away.” She nodded, “But so did the men.”

“You are alright and so are the girls.” Something moved behind his eyes, too fast for her to read clearly as he cupped her face in his hands, “Those men will be  found and dealt with in time, Nia  Nal . I promise you that.”

She  kissed  his palm, “I know.”

He blinked, cheeks darkening.

Nia laughed as the realization  of their positions  hit him, his eyes looking everywhere but at her as he straightened, hands wringing nervously. She pushed herself up, and hoped he couldn’t hear her gritted teeth as she did so, “Brainy.  _ Brainy _ , look at me.”

He stopped .

“It’s okay. You were just checking my injuries.” She could see his panic and smiled warmly, knowing exactly why he was so freaked out. “You  didn’t do anything wrong,  alright? I asked you to help  and you did. Okay?”

Brainy nodded.

“ Now I’m going to go take a bath. Can you put in  _ Empire Strikes Back _ ? ”

He flexed his hands, “Yes, of course. I can do that.”

“Okay.” She smiled, “Let  the others  know?”

He nodded, already pulling out his phone and Nia knew it would only be a matter of time before everyone piled into her apartment for an impromptu movie night, but Nia wouldn’t have it any other way.


End file.
